The present invention is generally directed to devices for assisting individuals in standing from a seated position or in lowering themselves to a seated position relative to a chair, couch, sofa, bed or other article of furniture. More specifically, the present invention is directed to a lightweight assist device which includes a base having a front first portion which extends forwardly of the article of furniture when in use and a rear second portion which is adapted to be positioned beneath the article of furniture during use. A pair of vertical brace members extend from the base and are adapted to abut the front of the article of furniture when the front portion of the base is positioned beneath the article of furniture to thereby stabilize the device as an individual's weight is shifted to and from the device during use. A pair of handle members extend from the vertical brace members and are oriented in a L-shaped configuration above the front portion of the base for purposes of being grasped by the individual when sitting or standing.
There are many individuals who, because of their age, health, injury or temporary or permanent physical condition, require assistance when sitting or standing relative to a chair, couch, bed or similar article of furniture. Often, such individuals do not have sufficient lower body strength to elevate themselves by pushing on the conventional arms of a chair and, in other instances, other articles of furniture such as a bed or sofa may not have arms positioned to assist the individual when sitting or standing.
In view of the foregoing, there have been a number of innovations developed to help individuals who require the use of their upper body to supplement lower body strength when sitting or standing. Prior to these innovations, individuals would use walking aids to help them when sitting or standing. For instance, an individual using a fixed frame walker would place the walker in front of them when in a seated position and pull themselves upwardly by placing their hands on the handrails of the walker. Unfortunately, because of the positioning of the individual relative to the walker, the walker would tend to tip as the weight distribution is spaced from the legs of the walker a sufficient distance to make the walker unsteady when a person is rising from a sitting position or being lowered from a standing position. This instability makes it difficult and sometimes impractical to use a walker to aid an individual in sitting or standing and, in some instances, can cause injury if the walker were to tip and the individual lose control of their movement.
To overcome the limitations associated with walking aids, it has been proposed to use support or assist devices which are specifically designed to be utilized with a chair or similar article of furniture. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,226,439 to O'Keefe et al., a support device is disclosed for use with chairs wherein the device includes a generally continuous bottom platform upon which a chair may be positioned. A pair of U-shaped rails extend vertically upward on either side of the platform so as to provide vertically adjustable handles on opposite sides of the chair. Unfortunately, with this type of device, a chair must be manuevered onto the support device before an individual can utilize the handles associated therewith. In addition, when standing or sitting, the individual cannot adequately distribute their weight forwardly of the chair as the handles only extend along the sides of the chair.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,560,053, a transfer device for a person using a wheelchair is disclosed which also discloses a platform-type base. The base is designed to be engaged by the forward portion of the wheelchair and a handlebar is provided which extends from the base toward an individual seated in the wheelchair. Unfortunately, the handle is positioned directly in front of the individual when they are rising to stand and thus acts as an obstruction when the individual attempts to shift their weight to their feet.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,509,432 to Peterson, a device to assist disabled persons is disclosed which includes a platform having a pair of handrails which are adapted to extend forwardly of a chair or other article of furniture with the handrails being spaced generally parallel with the sides of the chair or other article of furniture. The device includes four elongated leg elements for providing stabilization. When a person desires to stand or sit, their weight is placed on the platform and the handrails which are positioned forwardly of the chair are used to assist them in sitting and/or standing. Unfortunately, the handrails are positioned generally parallel to the sides of the chair and thus require that the individual have a significantly strong grasp to hold onto the rails in that they cannot pull on the rails when sitting or standing. Further, the device requires that an individual, when standing, must move forwardly through the device before being able to reach a walker or other assistance device when moving about. Because of this construction, the forward legs utilized to stabilize the device must extend beyond the hand support rails, thus increasing the weight and manueverability of the device. It would be preferred to have a device which could be utilized by individuals sitting in a chair or similar article of furniture where the device can be easily moved to the side of the article of furniture when not in use, but may be easily pulled and placed into position without a great deal of physical effort.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,354,022 to Coonrod dicloses another patient assist device which includes a handle member which is generally U-shaped and designed to allow a patient to pull themselves forwardly as opposed to grasping a pair of parallel rails as was disclosed in the patent to Peterson. In this patent, the handrail is attached to the forward end of a platform which is designed to be positioned beneath the chair or other seating device and a clamp is provided along a vertical member spaced from the handrail for engaging a leg of the chair so that the device is clamped to the chair to provide stability and prevent the device from rocking relative to the chair when in use. Although this device provides the benefit of allowing a person to pull themselves up when in a seated position, the device does not provide adequate stability if the individual places their hands along a portion of the handrail remote from the stabilization clamp. In these instances, the frame would tend to shift relative to the chair, causing an individual possibly to lose their balance when moving from a sitting to a standing or standing to a sitting position. In addition, the structure requires that the clamped element be engaged with a leg of a chair and thus, once in place, cannot easily be moved and will be an obstruction to an individual which may be an inconvenience when the individual desires to be seated without the device being positioned in front of them.
In view of the foregoing, there remains a need to provide a stable, lightweight and easily manuevered assist device which can be utilized to assist individuals when sitting or standing.